Editorial

With a new president comes a new direction for the University. President Leahy has begun the process of drafting a new strategic plan that will be finalized next July 2020.

Considering this change in leadership, the editorial staff discussed what a strategic plan means to them and what they would like to see in it.

Most of the staff was not sure of the true meaning of a strategic plan. However, it was best explained by one editor who said it is a plan that sets goals which are, “Focused on investing in the university through strengthening our academics and our faculty.”

The editors had a range of issues that they would like President Leahy to address in his plan such as new academic programs, student involvement, extracurricular activities, campus housing, the environment, and tuition.

In regards to academics, one editor wanted an expansion on the liberal arts studies and sciences offered at the University in the plan. Specifically, the editor thought that engineering should be introduced. “We could begin right away with electrical engineering as an expansion of the software engineering program within the computer science department. I think that’s a small step in a big direction, as it would attract a new brand of students as well as contribute to enhancing our university as a whole,” the editor said.

Staying inside the classroom, another editor wanted the plan to address “a more rigorous curriculum.” The editor discussed how much valuable real world experience they received from their internship and wished they received more of those lessons in class. The plan should, “create curriculums that mirror the work force, and the type of skills you will need, before you get there. Although theory based work is important, it is also imperative that you can be creative and apply your ideas in a work setting.”

To further enhance classroom learning, one editor desired the plan to emphasize interactive based activities such as, “How a professor takes his Movie Review class to the actual movies for the final to review a film in the theater.”

For graduate students, one editor said the plan should, “focus on expanding the graduate programs that are offered at the University, and giving the graduate curriculums the resources that are necessary in order to succeed.”

Outside of the classroom, an editor wished for the plan to include student involvement. “Perhaps working with student organizations to build larger events to integrate the student groups,” the editor said.

Moreover, the plan could touch on extracurricular activities to lift student involvement and get the word out about things to do on campus. One editor gave some examples, “The Monmouth Review, the university’s literary magazine, is published once a year in the spring semester but most students don’t know about it. Even our own Outlook doesn’t get much publicity around campus.” The editor concluded with, “I think it’s important for the university to be more efficient at promoting extracurricular [activities] so that students can gain opportunities for gathering experience during their time here at Monmouth.

For those who live on campus, one editor said the plan can tackle, “Improving campus housing and increasing accessibility, especially within the buildings that are historical on campus.” With two aging buildings on campus like Elmwood and Pinewood, there needs to be more improvement where our students are living.

While the plan can discuss on campus living, it could also emphasize the importance of becoming a greener campus. An editor pointed out that they would like to see, “A plan for limiting the consumption of single-use plastics on this campus.” The editor wished the plan could, “implement a reusable container system to eliminate the terrible plastic and Styrofoam containers handed out at the Dining Hall and Student Center. Also, find a more environmentally safe alternative to the single-use silverware that accompany the to-go meals on this campus.”

Of course, to fund all of the initiatives we would like to see on the plan, tuition must be stressed. A student discussed how the plan needs to, “figure out how to become less tuition-dependent because students will otherwise just be crushed by even the slightest of tuition increases-and many students already are.”

To summarize all the editors’ thoughts on the plan, one put it best with, “Above everything, this plan needs to treat students as students, not as customers or just recipients of a diploma.”